Dryopteris

Dryopteris, commonly called wood ferns, male ferns, or buckler ferns, is a genus of roughly 300 to 400 fern species in the family Dryopteridaceae, distributed across Asia, the Americas, Europe, Africa, and the Pacific islands, with its greatest diversity in eastern Asia. Most species form a stout, slowly creeping rootstock topped by a vase-like crown of fronds, bear round spore clusters (sori) protected by a shield-shaped indusium, and carry prominent scales along their stipes. The genus is notable for extensive natural hybridisation and polyploidy, with the North American Dryopteris hybrid complex serving as a well-studied example of speciation through allopolyploid hybridisation. Fossils attributed to the genus extend back to the Cretaceous period, with material recovered from localities ranging from North America to Antarctica.